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It's Our Ship: The No-Nonsense Guide to Leadership
Captain D. Michael Abrashoff, legendary commander of the USS Benfold , continues in the same vein of his bestselling book It's Your Ship with the knowledge he's gained from his speaking to and advising some of the top business minds in the world.
The story of Captain Abrashoff and his command of USS Benfold has become legendary inside and outside the Navy. By governing his ship with his unique management techniques, Abrashoff turned the Benfold into a model of naval efficiency, with amazing cost savings, the highest gunnery score in the Pacific Fleet, and a highly motivated and top performing crew.
In It's Your Ship , he first demonstrated how to bring his successful management techniques from the ship to the boardroom. Now, in his newest book It's Your Ship, in the same rugged, can-do voice, Abrashoff will focus on the leadership, motivational, and management insights and tips that he has learned from his last six years of addressing business and corporate audiences.
Abrashoff's timely advice will be eminently prescriptive, and will feature anecdotes and insights from leaders of businesses large and small and from public and non-profit sectors.
The story of Captain Abrashoff and his command of USS Benfold has become legendary inside and outside the Navy. By governing his ship with his unique management techniques, Abrashoff turned the Benfold into a model of naval efficiency, with amazing cost savings, the highest gunnery score in the Pacific Fleet, and a highly motivated and top performing crew.
In It's Your Ship , he first demonstrated how to bring his successful management techniques from the ship to the boardroom. Now, in his newest book It's Your Ship, in the same rugged, can-do voice, Abrashoff will focus on the leadership, motivational, and management insights and tips that he has learned from his last six years of addressing business and corporate audiences.
Abrashoff's timely advice will be eminently prescriptive, and will feature anecdotes and insights from leaders of businesses large and small and from public and non-profit sectors.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published May 12, 2008
78 people are currently reading
358 people want to read
About the author
D. Michael Abrashoff
19 books71 followersD. Michael Abrashoff served for almost twenty years in the U.S. Navy, culminating in a tour of duty as captain of the $1 billion warship USS Benfold. After leaving the navy, he wrote a bestseller about progressive leadership called It’s Your Ship. He now lectures to business audiences around the country.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
May 14, 2010
Just like the title says, this book is very straight forward, a no-nonsense guide to leadership. I got this book when I was promoted in my old work place. And although I really never had to lead many personnel, it did come handy. At least I understood why that ship was sinking.
Many of the tips and advice that the author gives are plain common sense, especially if you are not tyrannical, manipulative or exploitative person. Otherwise, don’t even read the book, because the advice given intends to make your subordinates feel at home, valued and respected so you can create a good workforce. If you fall into any of this categories, you probably won’t be reading this book, since you base your leadership on fear and abuse, and you probably think you are the best leader ever because everyone complies with the first yell of the day.
Other tips I didn’t know, the least of them I must say, but it still was a good read. It guides you to lead your personnel so everybody wins. Sometimes you have to have a firm hand and sometimes you can lose the grip a little bit, but whatever you do you have to be coherent and consistent. As a leader you really make statements and make your point by example. I have known many so called leaders who behave in such a contradictory way, that their personnel don’t trust them, don’t believe them, and most important, they don’t follow at all. If you want to succeed as a leader you have to be the first one on board. You can’t expect everyone else to do the job, row the ship, while you kick back and just yell and point fingers when things go wrong. And it’s best if you do know everyone’s name in your ship. Otherwise you become a god like figure who people either fear, or ignore.
The book has many examples of how good leadership has its rewards, and how bad leadership can lead your “boat” astray. But one thing is for sure, the success of your navigation in the business world depends on the captain on board. And if this “captain” makes everyone feel that the ship is also theirs, he/she will have a wonderful ride and a lot of rewards.
Many of the tips and advice that the author gives are plain common sense, especially if you are not tyrannical, manipulative or exploitative person. Otherwise, don’t even read the book, because the advice given intends to make your subordinates feel at home, valued and respected so you can create a good workforce. If you fall into any of this categories, you probably won’t be reading this book, since you base your leadership on fear and abuse, and you probably think you are the best leader ever because everyone complies with the first yell of the day.
Other tips I didn’t know, the least of them I must say, but it still was a good read. It guides you to lead your personnel so everybody wins. Sometimes you have to have a firm hand and sometimes you can lose the grip a little bit, but whatever you do you have to be coherent and consistent. As a leader you really make statements and make your point by example. I have known many so called leaders who behave in such a contradictory way, that their personnel don’t trust them, don’t believe them, and most important, they don’t follow at all. If you want to succeed as a leader you have to be the first one on board. You can’t expect everyone else to do the job, row the ship, while you kick back and just yell and point fingers when things go wrong. And it’s best if you do know everyone’s name in your ship. Otherwise you become a god like figure who people either fear, or ignore.
The book has many examples of how good leadership has its rewards, and how bad leadership can lead your “boat” astray. But one thing is for sure, the success of your navigation in the business world depends on the captain on board. And if this “captain” makes everyone feel that the ship is also theirs, he/she will have a wonderful ride and a lot of rewards.
August 31, 2022
This book is a worthy follow-up to Captain Abrashoff's management classic It's Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy. While the original focused on Captain Abrashoff's management experiences in the Navy, this book sails similar seas, but brings in real world examples from the business and sports arenas.
It's Our Ship is refreshing in the author's admittance of his shortcomings and lessons learned since writing It's Your Ship. He quotes business and sports leaders in this follow-up and presents key leadership traits from a non-military perspective.
Companies featured include In-N-Out Burger, Able Distributors and Philadelphia Insurance.
Leaders discussed include Bill Walsh, former coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Ann Mulcahy, former CEO of Xerox and Donald Rumsfeld.
Still, the most compelling stories originate from Abrashoff's experiences in the Navy. Two snippets that resonate include the following:
One negative: "My initiation to Albert David (a Navy frigate) was haphazard to say the least. I had reported with high enthusiasm: now my concern became dread. Here I was reporting aboard my frigate and no one seemed to know or care."
One positive: "I handed out 115 Navy Achievement Medals in my first year as commanding officer, instead of the fifteen authorized for my ship."
We can learn from good leadership examples, and take initiative on our own to lead regardless of our title, whether these examples originate in the business arena, on the gridiron or on the high seas. Whether It's Your Ship or It's Our Ship, grab the wheel and take command!
Access Gene Babon's reviews of books on Business Leadership and Business Strategy at Pinterest.
It's Our Ship is refreshing in the author's admittance of his shortcomings and lessons learned since writing It's Your Ship. He quotes business and sports leaders in this follow-up and presents key leadership traits from a non-military perspective.
Companies featured include In-N-Out Burger, Able Distributors and Philadelphia Insurance.
Leaders discussed include Bill Walsh, former coach of the San Francisco 49ers, Ann Mulcahy, former CEO of Xerox and Donald Rumsfeld.
Still, the most compelling stories originate from Abrashoff's experiences in the Navy. Two snippets that resonate include the following:
One negative: "My initiation to Albert David (a Navy frigate) was haphazard to say the least. I had reported with high enthusiasm: now my concern became dread. Here I was reporting aboard my frigate and no one seemed to know or care."
One positive: "I handed out 115 Navy Achievement Medals in my first year as commanding officer, instead of the fifteen authorized for my ship."
We can learn from good leadership examples, and take initiative on our own to lead regardless of our title, whether these examples originate in the business arena, on the gridiron or on the high seas. Whether It's Your Ship or It's Our Ship, grab the wheel and take command!
Access Gene Babon's reviews of books on Business Leadership and Business Strategy at Pinterest.
August 29, 2009
Most of my books reviews will have this disclaimer. Most of the books in my library are audiobooks. I prefer audiobooks especially on long trips. I feel that if the book is that bad at least my time was not a complete waste. With that said I enjoyed the book very much. It was written by a Navy Captain. Someone once said if you get any bit of new information from a business book then it is worth it. I received alot of good practical information and you don't have to be in the service to appreciate it.
January 1, 2015
This is the best book on leadership I have ever heard, hands down. I got the audio version, and I found it great to hear the author read the book to me in his own voice. The lessons and difficult decisions that leadership positions bring are addressed in a very straightforward manner. I have listened to this twice, and bought copies for friends and entrepreneur colleagues.
July 4, 2010
Better than the "It's Your Ship," if for no other reason than it documents the humility of what the author has learned from publishing the first book. Finally sunk in how to trust my employees to do the right thing by the end...something I've struggled with.
July 7, 2016
An excellent follow-up to It's Your Ship - the author goes deeper into his own journey of leadership acknowledging the short-sightedness of no having an inclusive exchange with his co-leaders on other ships in the fleet. This is a fast and fantastic read - well worth the time.
April 23, 2015
I'm reading this for our book club at work. We read, "It's Your Ship" and wanted to follow up with the second book. Mostly common sense leadership advice but interesting from a military perspective. He tells some great stories in both books.
August 10, 2009
The key addition to Mikes leadership tools is to think of the larger team, not just the team you lead
January 7, 2013
Read by the author, the audio book version is incredible. So many lessons that can be applied anywhere, anytime. A++
May 6, 2013
Great learning experience for people coming into leadership roles
November 25, 2024
It’s Our Ship is the third book by D. Michael Abrashoff, and while I wanted to love it as much as his first two, it didn’t quite measure up. The book includes a significant amount of retread from his earlier works, and while the stories are still inspiring and well-told, hearing them for a third time—or seeing the same story referenced multiple times within this book—felt a bit repetitive and tiring.
Abrashoff’s outlook on leadership is undoubtedly valuable, and it’s clear that he genuinely cared for his people and made meaningful changes in his command. However, this book doesn’t bring much new to the table. As a standalone, it offers great insights and practical advice for leaders, but as part of a series, it feels limited in originality and fresh ideas.
Overall, It’s Our Ship is a solid read, but it’s not mind-blowing. If this is your first introduction to Abrashoff’s leadership principles, you’ll find plenty to take away. However, for those familiar with his earlier works, it may feel like a retelling rather than a continuation. It’s a decent addition to his catalog, but I expected more.
Abrashoff’s outlook on leadership is undoubtedly valuable, and it’s clear that he genuinely cared for his people and made meaningful changes in his command. However, this book doesn’t bring much new to the table. As a standalone, it offers great insights and practical advice for leaders, but as part of a series, it feels limited in originality and fresh ideas.
Overall, It’s Our Ship is a solid read, but it’s not mind-blowing. If this is your first introduction to Abrashoff’s leadership principles, you’ll find plenty to take away. However, for those familiar with his earlier works, it may feel like a retelling rather than a continuation. It’s a decent addition to his catalog, but I expected more.
June 18, 2019
Full 1930 words: the length of my book reading notes which I created while reading this excellent book about the exemplary leadership. At some point, I caught myself that I'm starting to copy its text inside my notes - that's how much I enjoyed reading it.
If you need a quick reference of what is to be a leader, the book is an excellent starting point. It's not an ordinary book, in the sense that once you finish it, you'll still be having it at hand for future reference.
The author shares his experience and thoughts at leadership behaviors, challenges, methods, and practices. Behaviors are split at chapters; chapters are formed by different practices and challenges, which formulate the given behavior. A perfect reference for both young and mature leaders, as it presents this subtle science about people understandably, easy to digest, and remember.
This book will remain on my list of books, which I'd recommend to any young leader.
If you need a quick reference of what is to be a leader, the book is an excellent starting point. It's not an ordinary book, in the sense that once you finish it, you'll still be having it at hand for future reference.
The author shares his experience and thoughts at leadership behaviors, challenges, methods, and practices. Behaviors are split at chapters; chapters are formed by different practices and challenges, which formulate the given behavior. A perfect reference for both young and mature leaders, as it presents this subtle science about people understandably, easy to digest, and remember.
This book will remain on my list of books, which I'd recommend to any young leader.
May 16, 2020
Has a few tidbits of wisdom but this book is largely disappointing. It does not introduce any novel ideas or ways of thinking about leadership, it's just a compilation of thoughts and stories, largely driven by the author's experience in the navy.
If you've never read a leadership book, go ahead and read this one. But if you've read a few, the ideas presented are not very interesting or novel.
I was hoping it would be heavy with sailing analogies given the chapter titles but it is not. It's mostly about stories on board.. Some chapter's titles like "sail close to the wind" don't even make sense in the context of his ship, which was not a sailboat. The title is the analogy but he does not explain the connection between the sailing close to the wind and the different in speed that has... or that sailing too close will get you in irons. The chapter title ends just being a random reference to how a sailboat works but there are no stories with wind and sailing close-hauled...
If you've never read a leadership book, go ahead and read this one. But if you've read a few, the ideas presented are not very interesting or novel.
I was hoping it would be heavy with sailing analogies given the chapter titles but it is not. It's mostly about stories on board.. Some chapter's titles like "sail close to the wind" don't even make sense in the context of his ship, which was not a sailboat. The title is the analogy but he does not explain the connection between the sailing close to the wind and the different in speed that has... or that sailing too close will get you in irons. The chapter title ends just being a random reference to how a sailboat works but there are no stories with wind and sailing close-hauled...
June 30, 2024
I read the original when it came out and I have carried so many of the principles into various leadership positions and they have proven invaluable. This wasn’t great follow-up. Some great reminders and I love that it showcases the growth of the author. It not often I make notes from leadership books because not much is new, but there were some things I hadn’t considered before that I wrote down.
January 6, 2018
The sequel to his earlier book, "It's Your Ship," this is Abrashoff's follow up volume, with more leadership and management insights from both his time in the U.S. Navy, and many leadership examples from the corporate world.
August 6, 2024
I can't believe I didn't write a review when I finished reading this book. I've read both Capt. Abrashoff's books and both are equally good reads. I will be recommending this book as required reading for our workforce.
June 6, 2018
3 or 4? Glad somebody appreciates those in the trenches, or the sewage pits. A short read.
September 3, 2018
This was an easy read with very helpful real life stories and examples. I enjoyed it 😊
October 28, 2019
Solid book, good examples, useful message. Slightly lacking on practical methods of application that one would expect from a 'guide'.
July 16, 2020
A short, easy-to-reference, and straight-forward guide to leadership. It's far more "tips-and-tricks" as opposed to leadership theory, but it's effective
July 4, 2023
Excellent
September 3, 2017
This book actually has great content but I read this in the same day as his first book and a lot if not most of this content was the same. If you want the shortened version, this is a good book to read. In theory this was a compilation of things he's learned since the first book but he just retold the stories from the first book.
August 27, 2019
A great but short follow up to his first book, It's Your Ship. I loved the first book, this is sort of a review of the lessons in that book with additional perspective offered by a few years of separation from USS BENFORD as well as examples from the business world. I enjoyed this book, but it's no substitute for It's Your Ship.
March 9, 2009
The author share's stories about people he admires in different industries and then sidetracks into his personal navy experiences. It's interesting to see how the military mind values skills in the civillian world.
July 4, 2008
Overall, a pretty good book; however, the author serious lacks in ethics and morality, which really upset me.
August 10, 2008
A good common sense approach on how to treat people with respect without forgoing your role as a leader.
May 26, 2009
Mostly a rehash of the first book, which was much better at showing the organization secrets of the USS Benfold. Very quick read.
October 3, 2015
Reading for a work "book study"
November 23, 2013
Great boot. Full of insight into managing staff and getting results.
September 18, 2014
An extension of the It's Your Ship book, it adds some valuable insight into playing nicely in the sandbox with your peers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews